Serena vs. Bethanie: Clash of the Tennis Fashion Divas

Fans at the Western & Southern Financial Group Women’s Open tonight may be attending a tennis match, but they will be treated to an on-court fashion show when tennis’ fashion divas Serena Williams and Bethanie Mattek take to the court for their second round match.

Any tennis fan is aware of Serena’s penchant for fashionable, although sometimes they come across as downright strange, tennis outfits, but we are still getting a glimpse of Bethanie Mattek’s taste in clothing. Actually, anyone watching Mattek’s match against Venus Williams at Wimbledon only a few weeks ago received more than a glimpse of Mattek’s fashion statements on Centre Court. Tube socks may be out of style on the streets of New York City, but why should they not be hip on the greatest and most traditional tennis court in the world?

Bethanie Mattek and Serena have never played each other, and in fact, I was expecting Shenay Perry to meet Serena in a showdown of the past and future of American tennis. Perry nearly made it to the second round, but Mattek came back from behind to win the match in three sets. Mattek has actually performed very well at Cincinnati in the past, reaching the semifinal last season, before losing to eventual champion Patty Schnyder. She is one of the young Americans who are coming through the ranks, but her career has almost come to a standstill as she has been hovering in the top 200 for four years.

It is hard to see Mattek upsetting Serena, especially after the trashing Anastasia Myskina received at the hands of Serena on Tuesday night, but stranger things have happened. Serena is definitely not immune to early round upsets; after all, they have been the story of her career for the last several months.

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